Torn in the Darkness
by rukia4ichigo
Summary: On a mission, Ichigo is given one of Orochimaru's curses. While trying to battle this curse, the hollow within threatens to take over. What will Ichigo do, and will he ever complete his mission to defeat the evil sannin? Please read and review!
1. The Curse Mark Revealed

**Torn in the Darkness**

Hey everyone, sorry that I had taken so long to upload a story. I had been so busy with other things and also this writers block was pretty bad. I started to write this story before Congratulations and I decided to upload the first chapter for all of you. Hope you enjoy!

**Rating**: T

**Series: **Naruto/Bleach crossover

**Summary: **Ichigo has to complete a very difficult mission to defeat Orochimaru - delivered to him by captain-commander Yamamato Genyruu Sai in order to be an eligible candidate for the position of captain. However, during the fight, Orochimaru plants a curse mark on Ichigo's neck. If that is bad, things get worse as Ogichi, the hollow within, threatens to take over Ichigos body! Will Ichigo ever complete his mission or join one of the conflicting dark sides that await him?

**Warnings: **This story contains spoilers from Naruto Shippuuden, and very few spoilers from the Arrancar arc. Also, some characters may be OOC. Rated T for language, violence, and darkness.

**Disclaimer: **I do not own Bleach or Naruto. They are copyright to their own creators. All I own is the storyline.

**Chapter 1: The Curse Mark Revealed**

_Lieutenant Ichigo Kurosaki, 13th protection squad:_

_Defeat Orochimaru, a powerful and wanted ninja known throughout the living world. He is known to be one of the three legendary ninja known as Sannin. You must do this alone without any help whatsoever. Should you succeed in this mission, you might be eligible to become a captain._

_Yamamato Genyruu Sai_

_Captain-Commander_

Ichigo rolled his eyes as he unfolded the paper scroll and stuffed it in his black shuhakushou. He had read the scroll more than 50 times even though he was pretty sure of himself that he could defeat this guy regardless of the large number of warnings that he had received from his captain, friends, family, and fellow subordinates.

"He's too dangerous, Ichigo. Be on your guard at all times."

"You sure you don't want help?"

"Ichigo, are you sure you want to do this mission alone? He may be a ninja but he is the most dangerous of them all. Who knows what tricks he has up his sleeve. You are sure to be killed."

Despite his confidence about this mission, Ichigo just saw it as boring and a waste of his time. However, since the scroll was delivered from the captain-commander himself by his own captain and since he had heard that this ninja had hurt so many innocent people, he was obligated to complete this mission no matter what he thought.

Leaning against a tree, the shinigami took a deep breath as he looked around his surroundings. He was told that the ninja would be somewhere in this area of Konoha Forest based on close surveillance from the development and research unit. Taking another look around, Ichigo realized that the coward just was not arriving. "Heh, I am just wasting my time on this good-for-nothing mission," he muttered to himself.

He started to daydream about his friends, family, fellow subordinates, captain...and girlfriend. He and Rukia had been in a relationship for about seven months, starting shortly before he was appointed as the lieutenant of 13th division. Ever since, they had been completing missions and training together. Every time they were on a break from their mission, they would do things together as a couple - cuddling and making love. Ichigo missed her so much, and he had hoped that when he finishes this mission he would spend quality time with her again.

Suddenly, a rustle among the trees snapped him out of his daydream. Grabbing his zampakutou, he looked around, snapping his head in all directions. When everything went quiet, he took a deep breath again and leaned his zampakutou against his tree. "Heh, must be the wind or something," he mumbled as he rubbed his eyes out of boredom and slightly out of fatigue. "God this is hopeless."

That was when a kunai was shot just inches from his shoulder; Ichigo winced with surprise and grabbed his zampakutou once again. "What the fucking hell?" He nearly shouted as he started to stand up.

"Well, well, well," a voice sounded from a branch of a nearby tree." Ichigo looked up and saw a ninja with a metal forehead protector and glasses smirking back at him. "Who the hell are you?" Ichigo asked, tightening his grip on his sword. "Are you this Orochimaru guy that I had been sent to hunt down?"

"No, I am not," He corrected with an evil chuckle, "My name is Kabuto Yakushi, but I work for Orochimaru as his medical assistant and spy. If you want to find the one you are looking for, he is right behind you."

Ichigo turned around with a jolt and was face-to-face with a tall, thin man with long black hair and a very pale face. He wore a cream-coloured kimono, and the look in his eyes resembled somewhat of a snake. Ichigo shuddered slightly at the appearance and the creepy reiatsu emanating from the thin man standing before him. "So this is Orochimaru," he muttered to himself. "Now I know why they say that he is dangerous."

"What they say is correct, my friend," Orochimaru said in his very sly tone. Ichigo winced for he did not realize that this guy had really good hearing. "However, I will not let you take me down so easily."

"Heh, I had a feeling that you might say that." Ichigo smirked. "Well if it is a fight you want then it is a fight you will get." He pointed his zampakutou in front of him, where the cloth protector at the hilt started to revolve and tighten around his arms. An aura of blue light surrounded his body as his eyes shone brightly with the same colour. "BAN...KAI!" He screamed as the light exploded in all different directions. Orochimaru and Kabuto shielded their eyes from the impact.

Once they uncovered their faces, they stared in awe at what they saw in front of them. There, Ichigo stood in his bankai with his coat flapping behind him and his long, black, slender sword prepared for battle. There was a look of confidence in his eyes as he glared icily at the snake-like ninja in front of him. "Tensa Zangetsu."

Orochimaru laughed. "I don't know what the hell just happened, but you don't look that much different from what you were before." Nearby, Kabuto added another chuckle to his master's statement. Furrowing his eyebrows, Ichigo snapped, "Don't you _dare_ underestimate me! You haven't seen anything yet." Then Ichigo smirked and continued, "Oh, by the way, you should know the name of the person who will defeat you right here, right now. My name is Ichigo Kurosaki; pleased to meet you."

Kabuto suddenly landed between the two. "I will take care of this cocky son of a bitch, Orochimaru." Said man just snickered softly and replied, "very well, Kabuto." Then he jumped onto the branch of a nearby tree to observe the fight. Ichigo growled. "Wait a minute! My fight is with _you_, you fucking coward! I came here to fight _you -_ not some bastard like _him_." He averted his eyes to Kabuto at the emphasis of the word.

Kabuto chuckled once again and replied, "I am sorry but you can't fight Orochimaru without going through me first. If you don't like it, then too bad." Ichigo rolled as his eyes as he prepared himself to attack this obstacle that was stopping him from trying to complete his mission. He had no choice but to fight this guy. This was just perfect.

Kabuto once again chuckled as he encircled the glaring shinigami. "My, my," he said slyly, "Ain't this a sad sight? You have a sword and I am unarmed." Ichigo raised his eyebrow as he tightened his grip on his blade. "Cut the crap! Let's get this over with!"

"As you wish," Kabuto smirked as he leaped into the air so fast before Ichigo could make a move. Calming his mind, Ichigo was ready for any blow that would come near him - a blow very much like eight kunai zooming at him with full speed. Using shunpo, he managed to dodge the attack, and then he raised his sword over his hand and sliced it down in front of him, screaming, "GETSUGA...TENSHOU!" A powerful, black and red beam of energy shot out of his sword, but it barely missed his moving target.

"You cowardly bastard! Come down here and fight me like a real man should!" Ichigo shouted as he executed another Getsuga Tenshou from his blade.

Falling down from the smoke, Kabuto landed on the ground with a thud and Ichigo smirked. However, he gaped at the sight of a piece of wood. "What the hell?"

Averting his eyes upward, he noticed his opponent dive down towards him in an attempt to punch him in the chest, but the shinigami dodged the attack with a flash step.

Kabuto winced but he had barely dodged another blow from a swing from Zangetsu. Growling, he tried to send a turning kick up against the shinigami's robes but that was immediately dodged by another flash step. "Stop mocking me, kid..." The ninja hissed as he jumped towards the tree branch that his opponent was standing on. A lilac aura formed around his arm as he tried to repeatedly swing it towards his adversary, who kept dodging his every move, smirking every time.

Ichigo flash-stepped towards another tree branch and this time he was the one chuckling. "It seems your attacks, though as fast as they may be, don't seem to reach me. In this form, you won't even touch me."

"What the fuck?!" Kabuto winced in frustration. "That's not _possible_!"

"Sure it is. My bankai form can increase my power five-fold and my speed to immeasurable heights. It's _over_, ninja."

"I'LL GET YOU YET, YOU LITTLE PUNK!" Kabuto sent dozens more kunai towards Ichigo's way, and they were countered by another Getsuga Tenshou.

Meanwhile, Orochimaru was staring at the battle with interest in his snake-like eyes. He had never expected anyone to make his assistant lose his cool like that. However, he was impressed at the amount of potential this little boy had.

_Kabuto, keep it_ _going for a little bit longer, _He urged telepathically, _for I have a plan for his boy. I want to make him one of my own. It seems that I've found a new body._ A snide smirk formed on the ninja's white face.

Kabuto winced in surprise. He knew what his master was implying, but he knew that he could not question his plans. _Right, Orochimaru-sama._

"So, what other tricks are you going to have up your sleeve, Kabuto? Because it seems that you've run out of new techniques to kill me with," Ichigo taunted. "If you're done, then I think it's my turn." He had a feeling that he would use one of the binding spells that Rukia had taught him to immobilize this guy. Even though he was not sure how long the ninja would stay after he had cast it, he had to take his chance. Tracing his fingers in various directions in the air, he shouted, "Bakudou 9: _Geki_!"

At that moment, a red light surrounded Kabuto as he stayed in one place, immobile. "What the fucking hell?!"

Ichigo's smirk widened in triumph as he tightened his grip on his raised zampakutou, and then he lunged towards his frozen opponent. "You're finished!"

Before he could reach him, however, Kabuto disappeared right in front of him. "What the fuck?" Ichigo growled as he looked around for his adversary, "Impossible! How could he de-materialize after that kidou spell? I thought that anyone hit with a binding spell was supposed to remain in his spot."

A shadow loomed over him, shutting him out of his thoughts and rants. Ichigo slowly turned around and his blood turned cold at what he saw in front of him. Orochimaru's neck was elongated like that of a giraffe and it hovered above him, ready to strike. The shinigami poised his zampakutou to defend whatever was coming his way with a look of "bring it on" in his eyes.

The Sannin's eyes glowed an eerie scarlet as they immobilized the lieutenant's body. "What the fucking hell?! I can't move?!" he panicked as he was uncertain what would be coming next. Then, in a flash of light, Orochimaru's neck struck downward like the handle of a hammer and the ninja's teeth, now fangs, sunk into the struggling shinigami's neck. Ichigo shrieked in surprise as Orochimaru reverted back to his normal self and let go of his hold on the shocked shinigami's body.

An excruciating pain shot through the shinigami's body as he barely lifted his arm to feel the back of his neck, but found no teeth marks from where he was bit. Confused, he tried to turn himself to face the ninja before him, eyes widening not only with pain but with shock that still lingered from before. "What the hell did you do to me?!"

"Just a little curse mark that I had put on your neck. Overtime, this mark will take effect and you will be coming to me to seek more power, no matter what purpose it will be. Until that time, recover well." Orochimaru laughed and disappeared in thin air.

"Damn you! I will never join you! Get the hell back here, you asshole!" However, he had disappeared before he could realize it.

The pain increased at an amazing rate, causing his eyes to blur over. "Dammit! Must...follow.." However, he could barely move forward; the pain was too much to bear. Giving in, Ichigo's world went black as he collapsed onto the forest floor.

* * *

**A/N:** Well, based on a couple of reviews for the original Chapter 1, I had to redo the fight scene between Ichigo and Kabuto. I hope that this was better. Please don't tell me about the fact that I had them out of character though because that is pretty much what my style is. Anyway, please review! (And those of you who don't have an account with , you can still review regardless so don't worry about that)

Ciao.


	2. The Village of Konoha

**Chapter 2: The Village of Konoha**

"He will awake very soon."

"Who do you think might have done this, Tsunade-sama? And who is he?"

"I don't know who he is, Shizune. However, there seems to be a curse mark on his neck - definitely Orochimaru. It seems that he is going to have the same fate as Uchiha Sasuke..."

"Tsunade-sama! He is waking up!"

The two women quickly turned towards Ichigo, who was slowly waking up from unconsciousness. "Hello there," Tsunade smiled, "glad to see you awake. How are you feeling?"

Ichigo's eyes snapped open at the woman's words and immediately rose up from his bed as though he awoke from a nightmare. Tsunade gently placed a hand on his shoulder to calm him down, but Ichigo was still in a bit of a panic. "What the hell? How can you see me? Where the hell am I? What did you do?" Before he could continue with more questions, Tsunade smiled reassuringly and replied, "You really need to take it easy. You are in the medical ward at the Konoha hospital. Now then, get some rest. My assistant, Shizune, here, will watch over you until you have recovered. She will then bring you to my office so that I can explain everything to you."

"That still doesn't explain why you are seeing me right now!" Ichigo snapped, "Usually no normal human being can see me unless they have spiritual energy..." Ichigo slowed down as he stared at the blonde woman in front of him questioningly. "If that is what you are asking," Tsunade replied, "all of us here at Konoha are beyond normal, so of _course_ we can see you. You could say that we have some spiritual energy. Like I said, you need to get some rest and not to worry about anything until Shizune takes you to see me at my office. I will see you two then." As she stood up and walked to the door, Ichigo lay back down and slowly closed his eyes.

Several hours later, Ichigo woke up once again to find Shizune sleeping on her chair beside his bed. He let out a long sigh as he tried to recall what happened.

The last thing that he remembered was the looming, elongated form of Orochimaru, the sick and twisted ninja whom he was on a mission to hunt down, biting into his neck after Kabuto disappeared before he was defeated. With that memory in mind, Ichigo reached behind his neck as though he was feeling the strangely shaped mark engraved onto his skin. He cringed at the thought about what will happen since now he has this mark. He already had a hollow within him; will he have another dark presence within him? He thought about how his hollow would react - he probably wouldn't let that shit happen, or could he?

_"Hello, king. Lost in thought are we?"_

Ichigo winced at the voice of his hollow, which laughed his eerie and maniacal laugh.

_"I never knew that such an opportunity would be so wonderful! Guess what? I want to try to take over again!"_

The laugh echoed through his mind once again. Oh shit... Ichigo remembered the last time that his hollow had threatened to take over his body and had to ask the viazards' assistance to assist him in controlling this hollow. He had barely managed to push the hollow into the very core of his soul and it worked for a while - at least until now.

_"You remember how much I tried haunting your very life in the past? Well, I am going to continue doing it again, and this time, mark my words, your body and all of your powers will be MINE!"_

Ichigo closed his eyes as tight as he could to drown the horrible laughter, and eventually the laughter stopped but the fear still remained. He swallowed as he tried to calm himself from the horrible shaking that his body was enduring.

At that moment, Shizune awoke from her nap and smiled when she noticed the shinigami wide-awake. "Ah good morning," she greeted, "or should I say good afternoon. I suppose you are ready to talk to Tsunade?" Ichigo nodded as he managed to drag himself out of bed and follow the kind kunoichi out of the hospital ward, eager to know what was going on and what will happen to him now that he has this mark on his neck.

Ichigo stepped onto the hardwood floor of the large, spacious office, mesmerized by the area as he looked around. "Tsunade-sama will arrive very shortly," Shizune announced from behind him, "please have a seat."

Slowly, he pulled up a chair next to the hokage's desk and sat down, thoughts of previous events running through his mind. First, he receives a curse mark from an adversary whom he was supposed to hunt down; now his hollow is haunting him again - what next? He thought about how this would affect the relationship that he and Rukia had and his career as a lieutenant. He had always wanted to become a captain ever since the war with Aizen, but he was not sure how he would be able to achieve such a level now that he was affected by this curse. At first, he thought that this mission was a waste of time, but he understood the warnings that his friends, captain and subordinates, family, and girlfriend had given him. Burying his face in his hands in frustration, he sighed deeply, worrying about what would happen next and cursing himself for taking such a mission lightly.

His head snapped up when Ogichi's laughter rang in his head again. "_You're such a nave fool, king. Thinking that such a mission would be EASY!"_

"I never said it was going to be easy," Ichigo growled.

_"Yes, but you said it was going to be a waste of time! Now, look at you - under a curse mark! What a pathetic idiot you are!"_

"Heh, that's what everyone else says."

The hollow laughed again. "_Damn straight, Ichigo. Why don't you ever listen to anyone's warnings instead of being a stubborn bastard all the time? Oh well, it doesn't matter for I'm still going to take over that body of yours. Mark my words, king." _The laughter continued as Ichigo dug his fingers in his temples, trying to drown out the screeching laughter. "Shut up! Just shut up!"

But the hollow kept on laughing, getting on the young lieutenant's nerves more and more. "_I'm going to enjoy haunting you every chance I get. You know what I'm going to do after I take over your body? Tear everyone in this town to shreds!" _

Ichigos eyes opened wider. "You wouldn't?"

_"I sure would; just try me."_

He just could not take anymore of this. "Look, you leave these people out of this! This is between you, me, and...Orochimaru."

_"Wow, looks like kingie is trying to play hero again. You know, you don't even know these people so why bother protecting them?"_

Does this bastard understand that it was a part of Ichigo's destiny to protect everyone, no matter what? This was really aggravating the lieutenant more. "Just shut up already! As your king I "_order" _you to shut the hell up!"

Finally, the laughter stopped when the door to the office started to open. Ichigo whirled around only to face the hokage herself. "Hello, Ichigo," Tsunade greeted as she walked over to her desk with Ichigo's eyes following her. "Sorry for keeping you waiting. I had to take care of other important matters. Now we will have a chat. May I offer you anything? A cup of tea maybe?" Ichigo shook his head, and Tsunade smiled and sat down at her desk facing him.

She folded her hands in front of her as she stared at the young man in front of her, whose eyes were fixed downward. There was silence for a while until she broke it. "So, how are you feeling?"

"Okay, I guess..." Ichigo looked up to face the hokage before him. "I want to know how I got here, about this curse mark, about this Orochimaru guy. Please tell me what you know."

Tsunade sighed. "First of all, I want to ask you a few questions." The lieutenant gave her his attention to show that he was listening. "Who are you and what business do you have regarding Orochimaru? The reason why I'm asking these questions is so that I can get a better understanding of this whole situation that you're in."

"My name is Ichigo Kurosaki, and believe it or not, I am a shinigami."

Tsunade winced, slightly surprised. "A shinigami? You mean, a death god?"

"Yes."

Tsunade nodded her head. "That makes a lot of sense as to why you were confused about us seeing you. Anyway, go on."

"This badge here," Ichigo slightly rotated his badge so that the hokage can get a better look at it, "indicates that I am a lieutenant of one of the 13 protection divisions in the Soul Society, a spirit realm above this world."

"Very interesting."

Ichigo nodded. "I was sent here on an assassination mission to defeat Orochimaru. At first, I didn't listen to my captain and subordinates, family and friends, and girlfriend when they warned me about this guy. They said that he was dangerous and that I should be on my guard at all times. However, I took this mission very lightly and thought that it was a waste of time. That was a mistake. When I saw Orochimaru and fought his assistant, I was about to defeat his assistant when he disappeared and then Orochimaru gave me this curse mark. Now I know what everyone else was talking about, and I want to do anything I can to defeat this guy. The mission indicates that I can't do this with help, but if I get information on this guy then maybe I can have a better understanding."

Nodding again, Tsunade spoke up. "What these people said was correct: Orochimaru_ is_ dangerous; in fact, he is the most dangerous ninja in history. Your captain might have told you that he was a part of a legendary group of ninja called Sannin, am I correct?"

Ichigo nodded. "Yeah, although this mission was actually given by our captain-commander."

"I see." Tsunade continued, "The 3 Legendary Sannin were all trained and brought up here in Konoha. Each had special gifts and was trained with one purpose: to protect the former hokage of this village, the one whom I had succeeded. Orochimaru was thought to have this potential until one day he started to learn forbidden jutsu, or techniques, and was responsible for many brutal murders and cruel experiments. He was cast out of Konoha for such criminal acts, but who knew that eventually he would return to destroy this village. My successor tried to fight him off, but his sacrifice was in vain.

"It has been said that he gathered the strongest ninja from various villages and stole their bodies for his own cruel benefits every four years. That mark, for instance, would force anyone to do his evil biddings and, when it was time, he would cast out the soul and take over without warning. He gave you that curse mark so that you can become his servant, and one day he would take over your body without further notice."

Ichigo winced in surprise when he heard this. He was afraid for if Orochimaru would take over, he would not be able to protect his friends from anything that would happen to them. Instead, he would kill them with his own hands. Oh great, what was he suppose to do now?

"Is...there any way to stop it?" He stammered softly as he lifted a hand up to touch the curse mark once again. "There is only one," Tsunade replied, "and that is to defeat him, which is what you were sent here to do. However, it is not going to be easy because he can control your body at any given time using that mark."

She noticed the guilty and worried look that was on his face and smiled reassuringly. "Don't worry. I can send for a ninja who is exceptionally skilled at sealing jutsu. He can seal that curse mark for you just like what he did for a young man who used to reside here...before he took off to be one of Orochimaru's servants. What do you think about that, Lieutenant?"

Ichigo looked up to meet his eyes with the hokage's. "Do you think that can work?"

"It is the best that anyone can do."

His resolve returned to him, for there was a determined look in his eyes and a smirk on his lips. "Then it's settled. Thank you very much. However, please call me Ichigo."

"No problem, Ichigo. Call me Tsunade." She frowned for it was time for her to be serious again. "Now then, earlier you asked how you were brought here. Shizune and a couple other ninja brought you here after patrolling the Konoha forest. With my medical abilities, I was able to bring you back to full health."

"I see. Thank you so much, Tsunade. I owe you."

Tsunade laughed. "Once this mission of yours finishes, not only are you doing everyone in this Soul Society you speak of a favour but also everyone in this village a favour as well."

"As for this ninja you speak of, where can I find him?"

"Well, Kakashi is currently on a mission at the moment, but I will have him sent here right away. In the meantime, feel free to look around this village, and like I said before, everyone here can see you so you wouldn't need to worry about that. You're dismissed." Ichigo stood up from his chair and thanked the hokage as he was leaving the office.

* * *

Ichigo walked down the streets of the busy marketplace, watching all of the people preoccupied with their activities: sales people selling their wares, children laughing and playing, women sweeping their front steps, regular adult citizens just chatting amongst each other and buying whatever they needed. It reminded him of life in Rukongai, for there were some times in which he would walk amongst the busy street life in one of those regions. This town gave him a sense of enormous well-being with every step he took. In response to the waves and smiles of the people around him, however, he only smiled a little bit.

A small rumbling noise stopped his walking, however, and he looked around for a place where he might eat. His eyes stopped upon what seemed to be a noodle house with cloth flaps and bar-like stools in front of the kitchen area. As he walked closer to it, he suddenly realized that he didn't have any money for anything. _Nice try, dumbass, _he thought, _they won't let you eat for free, not at a place like this. _

An old man stepped out and waved him over. Ichigo stiffened as he hesitantly stepped over to him. "You look like a hungry fellow. How about you come over and eat? My daughter and I will fix you with something." Sweat dropping, Ichigo just shook his head hesitantly. "I-I dont know really. I didn't bring any money..."

"Nonsense," the old man shook his head and laughed, "it's on the house. Just choose what you like." The lieutenant just smiled as he followed the man inside the noodle house and was given a menu.

"So I hear that there was a shinigami in town and looked what just stepped in," the man said as soon as he stepped into the kitchen. Ichigo's head snapped up. "Excuse me? How did you know?" The man laughed again. "News travel fast, don't they? Especially when you are in a small village like this. I even hear that you're going to kill Orochimaru. Good luck on that." Ichigo went back to reading his menu. "So," the man continued, "what would you like?"

"I'll just have a bowl of ramen, please."

"Coming right up."

Ichigo stared into space while the man, along with a young woman that came out around the same time the shinigami made his order, prepared his food. He had so much on his mind ever since his meeting with Tsunade. So Orochimaru wants to take over his body, huh? Then again, it wouldn't be easy with the hollow spirit around. Speaking of which, Ichigo had to live with the haunting voice of the maniac inhabiting his body. If he were to choose, however, he would rather Ogichi to take over than have Orochimaru do that. He did not know what to do, and he was not sure how his family, friends, captain and subordinates would take it, any of this... The stress was unbearable and overwhelming; he needed to find a way to fight this off, but how?

"Excuse me, shinigami-san?" A voice awoke him from his daydream. Ichigo looked up to see the girl with a bowl of ramen in her hands and a smile on her face. "Here is your food, sir. Enjoy!" Ichigo thanked her, and started to eat quietly. "No, thank you for doing what you can about Orochimaru." Ichigo smiled shyly as he dug his chopsticks into the noodles, savouring every taste.

Just when Ichigo was finishing up with his ramen, a large hawk landed beside him with what seemed to be a rolled-up piece of paper attached to its leg. "I think there's a message for you, shinigami-san." The girl said as Ichigo carefully removed the paper from the hawks leg. As soon he removed it, the hawk flew away. "Call me Ichigo, miss." He said with a smile as he unrolled the note as carefully as he could.

This was what the message said:

_Ichigo, Kakashi Hatake has returned from his mission. Please report back to the Hokage at once._

Nodding in understanding, Ichigo immediately stood up. "I have to go back to the hokage," he said quickly. The old chef smiled in reply. "Alright, don't worry about your bowl. We will take care of that for you, and remember that it was on the house so you don't need to worry about paying us. The only payment that you will give us is the successful assassination of Orochimaru. Good luck, young shinigami."

"Thank you." Ichigo smirked with determination as he ran towards the hokage's office.

He walked into the spacious office only to find the hokage, her assistant, and a tall man whose face was covered up to his eyes and silver hair protruding in spikes, reading a book of some kind. Swallowing a nervous lump in his throat, Ichigo cleared his throat to get their attention. Tsunade smiled in greeting. "Ah hello there, Ichigo. This is Kakashi Hatake; the jounin that I told you about."

She elbowed Kakashi in the arm, causing him to look up. "Ah hello there, you must be the shinigami that everyone was talking about," He said with not so much emotion as he put his book aside. "The hokage here said that you are in quite a pickle with Orochimaru. I can understand that. Come with me please." Without hesitation, Ichigo followed the ninja out of the office and into a large, pitch-black room.

Using multiple hand gestures, Kakashi created a brightly lit, green circle covered in runic symbols, which lit the entire room in its dim glow. The lieutenant was amazed by the grandeur of this power. Everything was silent for a while until Kakashi stood up and stepped towards the center. "Please come to where I am right now and kneel in front of me, keeping your neck exposed."

Ichigo immediately complied, and, using another series of hand gestures, Kakashi placed his finger on the curse mark and shouted the word "Seal!" Ichigo shuddered with slight discomfort as more runic symbols formed around the curse mark in a reddish glow.

Kakashi removed his finger as Ichigo rubbed his curse mark once again. "That should hold for a while at least." Then he stood up once again and gestured the shinigami to follow him, which he acknowledged. "Best of luck in trying to defeat him though, and please come back alive," Kakashi continued as he waved his hand and walked off, leaving Ichigo standing in the hallway.

Rubbing the curse mark, Ichigo sighed and walked back towards the hokage's office. So this should hold for a while, huh? Even though he did not like the sound of that, he was grateful to the ninja for sealing his curse mark for at least it was better than nothing at all. Now the problem remains of what to do about Orochimaru...and his hollow.

_"Thinking about me again, huh King?"_

Ichigo stopped in his tracks and grimaced at the maniac voice in his mind.

_"Give it up. You won't get rid of me and you know it! Besides, earlier I had heard your thoughts that you would rather me take over than have this Orochimaru bastard take ya over. Hehe! So you _would_ let me take over!_

"Shut up," Ichigo snarled as he scowled into space. "I was thinking out loud. I know that there are other options than to have _you_ take over _my_ body. Don't take everything the wrong way."

Ogichi's laughter rang throughout the lieutenant's mind, giving him a headache. "Shut up! Just shut up!" Ichigo pleaded as he rubbed his temples, but his hollow would not respond. Suddenly, pain spread throughout the shinigami's body, paralyzing him and causing him to fall on one knee. "You're _not_ taking over!" Ichigo hissed, as he held onto his head tighter, trying to fight the laughter and the pain. However, he could not fight the overwhelming pain much longer and collapsed onto the floor, panting and with his hands still clutching his pulsing head.

* * *

Well there you go, everyone! I hope that you all like it. Please review!


	3. Attempted Take Over

Hey everyone. This is chapter 3 of Torn in the Darkness for your reading enjoyment. I didn't know whether or not to continue this story but after a few reviews, I decided to continue. At first, people didn't like this story but what can you do about that anyway? Lol.

Anyway, things get darker in this chapter as Ogichi takes over. So read on and please review!

**Disclaimer: **I don't own Bleach or Naruto, unfortunately, but I do own the storyline.

* * *

_**Chapter 3: Attempted Take Over**_

Patrolling through the hallway, Genma and his partner were conversing with each other about business when they spotted Ichigo lying on the floor, barely conscious. Nodding to each other, they slowly stepped over to him to get a better look when the Kurosaki grabbed his sword and sliced through Genma's partner.

"Raido!" Genma screamed as Ichigo slowly stood up, blood staining his cheeks as his smile was dripping with malice. "Impossible… Who are you?" the ninja stammered as his shocked eyes were fixed on the mask that was forming on his face.

"_Who am I_?" The demonic voice of Ogichi sounded as it was accompanied by a villainous chuckle. He lifted his head to show his twisted face, donned with the red-striped, white mask and piercing yellow-on-black eyes. Genma's eyes widened with fear. "_I have no name!_" The hollow screamed as he sliced across Genma's chest causing a blood-curdling scream to sound through the hallways.

Hearing screaming down the hall, Tsunade and Shizune rushed to the scene, accompanied by Kakashi and a few other ninja – all eyes had widened the moment they saw Ichigo chuckling and standing there amongst two unconscious and bloody ninja in front of him. They could not take their eyes away from the terrifying mask and the peculiar yellow eyes.

"What the hell are you?" Tsunade questioned as she scowled at the sight.

Ogichi snickered with amusement as he prepared for another strike. "_Thank you so much for your hospitality, but now I think that it__'__s time that I end this!_" He de-materialized in front of them and Tsunade shouted orders to the ninja accompanying her and Shizune to find the culprit and bring him down. However, at that moment, a blur zoomed past the unsuspecting ninja, cutting each one down. A maniacal laugh was heard throughout this.

Shizune was frightened. "Tsunade-sama! What is going on?"

However, her mistress could not answer for she was in combat with the hollowified shinigami. Kunai met sword and sparks flew, but Zangetsu proved to be more powerful for it was overpowering the Hokage.

"I thought…you…were after Orochimaru!" Tsunade grunted as she tried to stave off the cleaver-like sword. Ogichi laughed once again. "_Maybe so, but this body is mine now!_"

"So you're possessed?" Tsunade managed to inquire as she executed a kick to the viazard's ribs. It did not hurt him, but it pushed him back.

The hollow laughed once again. "_I wouldn__'__t say that this body is possessed. It had two souls from the beginning! I was biding my time to wait for the right moment to take over, and it had finally come! Ichigo is too naïve __–__ always wanting to protect people like you. Well you know what I say? Destruction and chaos rule all!"_

Tsunade snarled as she took out three needles from her sash and threw them rapidly towards the hollow, which dodged them with ease.

"_Is that all you got? I think I should end this quickly." _With a mighty swing of his sword, Ogichi cut through Tsunade's shoulders, earning a small shriek of pain and a small shower of blood to splash outwards. "TSUNADE-SAMA!" Shizune screamed as her lady fell to the floor.

Panting and holding her shoulder, Tsunade glared at her adversary as he was about take his leave. "Where the hell do you think _you__'__re_ going?" She seethed as Ogichi laughed once more. "_Nowhere in particular. Later!" _He crashed through the wall just next to him as he disappeared out of sight.

"Tsunade-sama!" Shizune shouted again as she ran to her mistress's side to help her up. "Are you alright?"

"Yeah, I think so. We must do something about that monster, but I have noticed something in particular."

"What was that?"

Tsunade paused as she had remembered what was also happening to Ichigo's body. "It seems that the seal is loosening. I noticed black marks forming along Ichigo's neck. If my guess is correct, I would say that he is heading towards Orochimaru right this minute."

Shizune gasped. "So what Kakashi did was all in vain?"

Tsunade's eyes narrowed. "Pretty much. None of us knew about this other spirit within Ichigo's body. I think I see the young shinigami's reasons for not wanting to tell us."

Shizune seemed to know what her mistress was saying. All what they had to do was hope for the best; that Ichigo would assassinate Orochimaru before any more damage is done to his body. As much as they wanted to help him in his bind, they knew that his mission forbade anyone to give him any assistance.

She sighed as she healed the injured Hokage and her comrades, wondering what would happen next to the young lieutenant.

* * *

Ogichi crouched in the middle of the village - a malicious grin spread across his face, a bloodthirsty look shone in his eyes, and black markings from the curse mark dotting every surface of his body. Zangetsu was held firmly in his hands and his insane eyes darted back and forth among the startled villagers.

As if it were even possible, his grin grew wider as he dematerialized and slashed through the nearby villagers at great speed. Bloodcurdling screams were heard as men, women, and children fled from the possessed shinigami who was laughing like a maniac with every swing of his gigantic sword. Blood splashed in all directions and bodies hit the ground, and Ogichi had enjoyed every moment of it.

"_You can get away all you like!" _He screeched above the screams, "_BUT IT WILL BE USELESS! HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!_

More ANBU shinobi flocked towards him and he chuckled. _"Coming to get more, eh? What fools!"_

Kunai flew with an attempt to stave the evil hollow, but the ninjas that threw such weapons were no match for their target. Ogichi deflected each one with tremendous speed and accuracy, much to their shock.

He tightened Zangetsu in his hands as he turned to face them. _"My turn, bitches! Let's roll!"_ He immediately disappeared and reappeared above the shinobi, swinging the zampakutou down like a hammer through each one as though they were nothing at all and continue his shrill laughter with every strike.

* * *

Not too far away, two teams of Shinobi, each lead by a jounin each, rushed over towards the bloody battle scene, hoping to put an end to the hollow's devious acts.

"You know what the hokage said," one of the jounin - a woman with long dark hair who was dressed in red and white - said, "try and stop this monster any way you can. We had no idea that the shinigami sent here had a split personality."

"Easy for you to say, Kurenai-sensei," Kiba, a young man garbed in a dark gray parka who was riding on a large brown dog, shot back, bearing his fangs. "This guy is dangerous as they come!"

"Let Team Gai stop him!" The leader of the other team boasted.

"You're the best, Gai-Sensei!" A younger version of that team's leader complimented with his hand in the air.

They arrived on the scene just in time to see many of the ANBU ninjas sprawled on the ground surrounding Ogichi who was covered in their blood. The trademark grin still spread on his face and a blood-stained Zangetsu gleamed in his hands.

"_Well, well, well,_" Ogichi said with a chuckle as he slowly stepped over to both teams who were frozen with shock, not only at the mess of bodies behind him but also at the way his reiatsu was off the charts. "_More fools to play with. Hehehe, I'm sure ready for the fun!_"

Ten Ten, a girl who was on Maito Gai's team, gulped as she pulled out her kunai and needles. Neji, her team mate, made a sign with his hands in front of his face and veins surrounding his eyes popped outward. Rock Lee, their team mate who looked like a younger version of their leader, went into a fighting stance.

On the other team, the large dog Kiba was riding, Akamaru, gave out a horrendous growl while the other members of his team, Hinata and Shino, went into a fighting stance as well. Hinata gulped but she knew that she had to show her confidence to her team mates.

Ogichi chuckled again and was just about to fight them until he froze on the spot. "_Damn it! Why the fuck do you keep on doing this?_ _I was just about to slaughter them!_"

Ogichi's hand flew up to the edge of his mask, as much to the young ninjas' confusion. He could hear the angry voice inside his mind. _"Get the fuck out of my way! They have nothing to do with our mission! Leave them alone!"_

"_You're such a bastard, King! Why the fuck would you defend them? You don't even know them!"_

"_I'm doing them a favour by defeating Orochimaru! Get the hell away from them and leave them alone!"_

Dark reiatsu surrounded the struggling and thrashing hollow as the dark markings started to disappear back into the curse mark just behind his neck. He dropped Zangetsu and continued his struggle, trying to stop himself from taking over the mask, but it was of no use. Ogichi let out a shrill scream as the mask shattered into hundreds of pieces before disappearing immediately.

Then silence fell upon the area as the shinigami dropped to his knees, panting and shaking from the horrible takeover. Both Kurenai and Gai's team looked onward, wondering what they would do.

Ichigo picked up Zangetsu and fastened it onto his back, a shameful look on his face.

Kurenai stepped towards him, but Ichigo sensed this and stopped her immediately. "I'm sorry for everything. I'll make it up by defeating Orochimaru. Just don't come anywhere near me." With that, he disappeared, leaving the bewildered group behind.

Gai rubbed the back of his neck. "Well that was surely interesting."

"I don't think we should have trusted him from the start," Kiba added, getting off his dog's back and patting his head, earning a whimper.

"Kiba-kun," Hinata trailed off.

Then Tsunade and Shizune joined the group; Shizune looked on in shock at the mess the hollow-possessed shinigami had done. "I had a feeling that he would something like this in that form," Tsunade commented as her assistant began to heal the wounded casualties left behind.

"What are we going to do?" Neji asked after turning his eyes back to normal.

"For all we know," Tsunade replied, "That wasn't Ichigo but an entirely different entity controlling him. I didn't think that he would have wanted to do this on his own. So the best we can do is just hope that he can be able to defeat Orochimaru in his situation. After all, it's why he came here."

She looked up into the sky where Ichigo might have gone. "Good luck, lieutenant."

* * *

Meanwhile, Ichigo was using flash step to travel across the skies, in search of Orochimaru. He had not shaken off the shame that his inner hollow had put him through when he had hurt so many innocent people, and on top of that, the seal that Kakashi had put on his curse mark had broken. What was next? What was he going to do? Taking the mission seriously was bad enough, but allowing his hollow to take over so that he could injure such innocent people who had tried to help him? This was too much for the lieutenant to handle. He did not know how he was going to complete this mission.

His scowl deepened and he sighed as he landed on a nearby shoreline. He did not know where he was, but he knew that he was exhausted from what had occurred earlier that day.

He sighed once again as he took his zampakutou off his back and laid it against a cliff. He could almost swear to feel a few drops of cold rain fall on his skin. _Perfect_, he thought to himself as he closed his eyes in annoyance, _what I need…rain… _

He picked up his zampakutou once again and moved to a more sheltered area nearby. Laying the cleaver-like sword against a rocky ledge, he sat down on the sand and stared blankly out into greying sky in front of him. _I don't know what to do anymore…_

* * *

So that's that everyone for this chapter. I'm sorry that it was really short. I was writing it during a writer's block . I'm going to be really slow on updates with this story because I have serious writer's block on it. Ideas for Inherited Nightmares have pretty much overtaken ideas that I have for this story, and I can't wait to start that story but first of course I have to do the Bleach Encore Chat. Nii-Sama Don't Preach is also coming very soon as well! So please be patient with me!

In the meantime though, please let me know what you think of this chapter.

Thanks!


	4. Ichigo's Revelation

**IMPORTANT NOTE: **Yes, I have decided that Ichigo's vasto lorde form would be due to influence of the curse mark as well as absorption of some of Ogichi's powers. In this story, the war against Aizen was long done and Ichigo never fought against Ulquiorra, so he never really reached that form yet. Hope this clarifies any confusion. This is in a slightly alternate universe, you could say.

Well guys, I must apologize once again about the huge hiatus on this story. I must assure you though that I have gotten all the research and inspiration that I need to finally complete this story. I must be honest with you though; this story is not my favourite. For one thing, I wrote this because I figured it could probably be a good idea, but I just didn't get enough inspiration for it, hence the annual updates. I guess Naruto is just not a good story-writing idea since I don't follow it as much as I follow Bleach.

Anyway, this is the final chapter. So, for those of you who liked this story, thank you for your positive reviews. They really mean a lot.

Without further ado, here's chapter 4 of Torn in the Darkness. Hope you enjoy.

* * *

**Chapter 4: Ichigo's Revelation**

The rain continued to pelt Ichigo's shelter, splashing against the rocky surfaces and flowing off the roofed ledge in waterfalls. It was cold, but the shinigami lieutenant did not seem to mind as he was snoring lightly against the back wall. Zangetsu rested beside him, propped up against the walls of the shelter.

He drifted off into a dream.

He found himself standing in Ukitake's office of the Thirteenth Division Headquarters, facing his captain who was kneeling on the floor facing him, a blanket draped over his shoulders.

Rukia Kuchiki was standing next to him – a scowl planted on her face as she stared at Ichigo. Her hands were balled into fists as she tried not to run over to where he was and punch him in the jaw with all her strength.

Ichigo tried to comprehend why he was here. Was his failure to assassinate Orochimaru that bad? After all, his defeat at the hands of Kabuto and the evil Sannin was humiliating enough. Why were they much stronger than he was, especially Kabuto? Wasn't he, as a shinigami, supposed to be stronger than a mere shinobi? Ichigo shuddered at the memory. Maybe he will hear it from Ukitake and Rukia and be done with it.

"Ukitake-Taichou," Ichigo greeted as if there was nothing else to say.

Rukia narrowed her eyes. "That's _all_ you can say? Jeez, you've got some nerve after you've failed to assassinate Orochimaru!"

Ichigo glared at her. "I don't need your nagging, midget."

"We've warned you," Rukia pressed on, ignoring him. "You were reckless. How could you lose against shinobi such as _them_?"

Ukitake held up a hand to stop Rukia from talking. "Enough, Rukia." He lowered his hand when Rukia fell silent. "Do you still want to do this, Ichigo?" Before Ichigo could answer, Ukitake continued to speak. "This mission should not be taken lightly. You know what he's capable of. If you don't succeed, the world will be in great peril. He doesn't just want to destroy Konoha Village. He will destroy any village in his and his army's path, except the Sound Village of course. Then he will make his way to other places, even Karakura. You understand this, don't you?"

Ichigo froze a bit when his hometown was mentioned, and then he sighed and looked down. "Why me though?"

"Because you're capable of doing this," Rukia replied. "We all believed you would do it."

"Until I got this curse mark, huh?" Ichigo held a hand up to touch the sealed mark behind his neck.

"You can still manage to defeat Orochimaru," Ukitake said.

Ichigo lowered his hand and averted his eyes back to his captain. "How?"

"That's up to you to decide," Ukitake replied.

Ichigo said nothing.

Suddenly, the scene shifted. Ichigo found himself on the cliff overlooking Karakura. This scene, however, was different from that in real life, as Karakura was in ruins. Giant snakes slithered among the flames and rubble, crushing whatever that was in their path.

A feeling of discomfort rose within him and a burning pain seared the back of his neck. He looked down, only to see black markings running everywhere on his skin. Ichigo gulped. What was happening?

Using shunpo, he got closer to Karakura – the streets were littered with dead bodies, blood, rubble, and flames. It was hard to say anything as Ichigo stepped through the wreckage that was once his home.

Something else was peculiar. Why was he void of emotion? This was his hometown! Shouldn't he be shocked? Depressed even?

Ichigo passed by a broken-down building, whose window was still intact. His reflection in this window made his blood run cold. He found himself looking into the eyes of Orochimaru, who was smiling back at him.

Ichigo stared at his arms again and was even more horrified when he saw them white as Orochimaru's skin.

His eyes flew open and he gasped in fright at the nightmare. Trying to catch his breath, he looked at his arms and was relieved that they were his skin colour. He lightly ran his fingers over the curse mark, but he could not feel any pain – yet.

This was so strange, but Ichigo had a feeling that his nightmare was a warning. After all, Tsunade had told him of Orochimaru's plans to take over his body. There was one thing he had to do to prevent such a thing from happening – destroy Orochimaru once and for all to rid himself of this curse before it was too late. Ichigo finally understood his mission and what he must do.

Grabbing Zangetsu and attaching it to his back, Ichigo crawled out of his shelter and stared into the sky. Clouds rolled up ahead while waves rocked back and forth against the shore. A gentle breeze blew through Ichigo's hair. "I will not fail this time," he whispered to himself. "Not anyone, not even Rukia or Ukitake-Taichou. Thank you..."

He sprung on his heels and took off from the beach to search for Orochimaru's hideout.

* * *

Orochimaru panted as he clutched the sheets of his bed. Where was that shinigami? He knew it was only a matter of time before he showed up.

Kabuto entered the room to check on his master. His jagged breathing was hard enough for the young shinobi to take. "Orochimaru-sama, please hang in there," he tried to assure. He placed a mug on Orochimaru's bedside table. "Here's some medicine for you."

"Where the fuck is that shinigami?" Orochimaru demanded through his teeth.

"He's on his way," Kabuto replied. "I feel his presence not too far from here."

Orochimaru grinned maliciously. "If that's so, then let him in when he arrives. It's about time for the transfer."

"Are you sure, Orochimaru-sama? That soon?"

The villainous sannin grimaced impatiently. "Are you fucking retarded, Kabuto? Of course, it's that soon! Let him in and direct him to me by any means necessary."

Without saying another word, Kabuto bowed and walked out of the room, shutting the door behind him. He did not really understand his master's motives sometimes. After all, there were other victims Orochimaru could inhabit. So why does it have to be a shinigami? What if he was too strong for Orochimaru to handle? This might kill him. Kabuto sighed. He knew he had no say when it came to Orochimaru's decisions. He walked down the hallway to the entrance of the hideout, where he was sure Ichigo was going to appear.

When he arrived at the hideout, Ichigo was certain that they would be waiting for him at the entrance. With this in mind, he decided to do a surprise attack. He knelt on the roof of the hideout and narrowed his eyes at Kabuto, who had just stepped outside. As he reached for Zangetsu, the black markings from the curse mark started to slowly spread all over his body.

"_You're such an idiot, King,_" Ogichi's voice echoed through his mind.

"So I've been told," Ichigo trailed off icily.

"_You do know that letting the curse mark take over will affect me as well_." Ogichi smirked.

"Keep in mind that I have control over you," Ichigo reminded.

"_But you don't have control over the curse mark!_" Ogichi argued, almost triumphantly.

"Either way, I'm using it against him. If he controls me, or at least tries to control me, I'm using your power as well as my own to counteract it. This curse mark's influence over me may change who I am, though, but it's the best way to defeat him."

"_So you're letting me take over?_" Ogichi asked, a tinge of hope laced in his voice.

Ichigo smirked. "We'll see, but that's only if you cooperate and focus on the mission at hand."

"..." Ogichi fell silent. He knew that Ichigo's instinct was growing stronger with every battle he had been in. He had no choice but to follow with this strategy. After all, this mission may involve no help from anyone else, but there was nothing about it that forbade Ichigo from using his hollowfication.

Ichigo waited until Kabuto's back was turned and jumped down from the roof – Zangetsu drawn.

Sensing this, Kabuto turned around sharply but before he could defend himself, Ichigo sliced through his neck, unleashing a vast amount of blood. An insane grimace spread across Ichigo's face as Kabuto's blood splashed on his face. He flicked Zangetsu to the side, releasing the blood that stained its silver and black surface. Then he entered the hideout, stepping over Kabuto's decapitated corpse.

He walked through the dimly lit hallway, searching for Orochimaru's chamber. He was also prepared just in case anyone would attack him.

Not too far behind him, a shadowy figure lurked in the shadows. A hand was holding on to a partially sheathed katana on his back while his red eyes stood out from his shadowy body.

Ichigo continued to walk down the hallway when he suddenly heard a rustle behind him. He swung Zangetsu to block his assailant's attack and stared into red eyes with black, tear-like markings. Ichigo furrowed his eyebrows as he managed to push the intruder back. The figure slid backwards, crouching on all fours.

"Who are you?" Ichigo demanded.

The figure stepped into the light, revealing himself to be Uchiha Sasuke. He got into a fighting stance. "Uchiha Sasuke," he answered bluntly. "I heard that _you_ were going to be Orochimaru's next host. It's too bad, really, seeing as how I had trained for years to be as strong as I am now, then finding out some guy is stronger than I am." He looked at Ichigo up and down. "However, I doubt you're as strong as they say you are."

Ichigo smirked. "Well, how about we test that theory? You must have found out my name then."

"Shut the fuck up!" Sasuke snapped. "Let's go!" He flung towards Ichigo, katana raised. Ichigo blocked and twisted his zampakutou. Then he slashed it through Sasuke's defences. Immediately, Sasuke dodged and tried to attack again. Ichigo blocked again and the two men stalled as energy flowed between them.

"Just so you know, you can't beat a Sharingan user!" Sasuke boasted with a smirk. Ichigo smirked wider as he bent his hand so the palm faced outward. Sasuke frowned. "It's useless! I know what you're going to do!"

"Then defend against it. Hadou 33 – Sokatsui!" A blue fireball shot out of Ichigo's hand and Sasuke was barely able to dodge it. The impact from the attack slightly burned him but left him stunned.

"Don't know what to make of it, huh?" Ichigo taunted. "I don't know about the Sharingan, but I _do_ know that you don't know how to defend against kidou. Here, have another! Hadou 73 – Soren Sokatsui!" Two blue fireballs shot out of his hand and Sasuke dodged them again, running along walls.

"Damn this guy!" Sasuke cursed as Ichigo shot another Soren Sokatsui at him. "He's starting to tick me off!" He turned to face Ichigo and did a few hand signs. "Fireball Jutsu!"

"Bakudou 34 – Enkosen!" Ichigo shouted as a transparent wall sprung up in front of him, shielding him from the large fireball.

"DAMN IT!" Sasuke cursed again. "What the fuck _is_ this guy?" He grabbed a handful of kunai, senbon needles, and kunai bombs. "Eat this, motherfucker!" He screeched as he threw his projectiles rapid fire.

Ichigo blocked and parried each projectile with ease to Sasuke dismay. "Now that you've made your moves, it's _my_ turn. GETSUGA TENSHOU!" A white crescent-shaped energy wave burst out of Zangetsu and sped toward Sasuke.

Even with the Sharingan, Sasuke had no idea how to defend himself from such a technique. He covered his face as he waited for the energy wave to come. An explosion followed, blowing Sasuke's hair back. The black markings from his curse mark appeared all over his body, as well as bloody gashes from the attack. Sasuke lowered his arms and glared at Ichigo. You've pissed me off for the last time, Kurosaki! I'm going to make sure that Orochimaru had _never_ chosen you to be his next host!"

The area shook as Sasuke started to glow. The markings spread even further throughout his skin as his hair started to grow longer. The markings made his skin turn scaly and gray, and scaly wings grew from his back.

Ichigo frowned as he watched this transformation take place. He had a feeling that this must be his opponent's full power. If this was the case, then he too must go to his full transformation. He pointed Zangetsu in front of him and the linen wrappings wrapped around him. "BANKAI!" Reiatsu exploded outward and Ichigo stood with his trench coat flowing behind him and light off his black blade. "Tensa Zangetsu."

"Hate to break it to you, Kurosaki," Sasuke said with a wide grin, "But you still don't impress me."

Ichigo sneered. "Don't make me laugh, Uchiha. I gave you a lot of trouble before. Actions speak louder than words, you know."

"Whatever," Sasuke growled. He pointed one of his hands to the ground, and electrical energy started to glow and crackle in his palm.

After the electric bolts were fully charged, Sasuke burst into a run towards his opponent. "CHIDORI!"

Ichigo stood still as he waited for the attack to come to him. He put a hand next to his face and summoned his hollow mask.

As soon as Sasuke approached him, Ichigo grabbed his hand wielding the technique and unleashed a vast amount of reiatsu. Sasuke gritted his teeth as he tried to continue unleashing his attack, but Ichigo's reiatsu cancelled the attack out. Then he tossed the shocked Uchiha to the side.

"I can tell that technique uses up a lot of energy," Ichigo noted in his synthesized hollow voice. "If you don't have anything else to show me, then I'd like to end this."

"YOU FUCKING BASTARD!" Sasuke screamed. "I REFUSE TO BE BEATEN BY THE LIKES OF YOU!" He charged another Chidori.

"When will you realize that it's over?" Ichigo stated. He slashed Zangetsu in front of him. "GETSUGA TENSHOU!" A wave of black energy shot towards Sasuke, who ran towards Ichigo with his fully formed Chidori in his hand.

An explosive amount of reiatsu was released as the Getsuga Tenshou and the Chidori collided with one another. Eventually everything went quiet once again, and Sasuke was lying at Ichigo's feet. A deep, bloody gash formed across his chest.

"You won, I guess," Sasuke grunted as he coughed up a lot of blood.

Ichigo made his mask disappear from his face as he looked down at his fallen opponent. "I told you not to underestimate me."

"Then I should tell you not to underestimate Orochimaru," Sasuke warned, "Even if you should use the curse mark against him."

"We'll see about that," Ichigo said as he stabbed Zangetsu straight through Sasuke's throat.

Orochimaru continued to struggle and pant in his bed. An insane grin was planted on his face as he sensed the fight between Sasuke and Ichigo.

At first, he was fixed on having Sasuke as his next vessel until he found out about Ichigo. He figured that a shinigami with so many special abilities, as well as a hollow spirit, would be better than a Sharingan-user. When Sasuke was beaten in his fight with Ichigo, Orochimaru was more confident that Ichigo would be the perfect vessel. "It's only a matter of time now," he whispered with an evil chuckle.

Outside his door, Ichigo stood with his back to the wall, waiting for his opportunity to strike. Ogichi was starting to get impatient. "_Come on! Let's get it done already!_"

"In a moment," Ichigo whispered as he slowly inched closer to the door.

"_Why?_" Ogichi demanded. "_He's in a weak state and unguarded! This is our chance! Burst in there and finish him while he's down! Or I might have to…_"

Ichigo hushed his counterpart. "Not yet. Even if he's in that state, he might still try to take over at any given time. When he does, however, that will be your moment to take him down at all costs, with me of course."

"_You've got this planned out, huh, King?_ _Why don't you realize that you're going back to your strategizing bullshit? I can't stand that! Don't forget about your killer instincts!"_

"I haven't forgotten," Ichigo trailed off, hand brushing against the knob. "I still can't be reckless." He gripped the knob and twisted it. "Let's do this." He opened the door and slipped through, Zangetsu raised.

"Welcome, Kurosaki," Orochimaru greeted, almost in a hissing whisper. "Whatever you came here to do, do it now." His evil grin never left his face as he was speaking.

"_Do it, King_," Ogichi urged.

Ichigo narrowed his eyes as he gripped Zangetsu tighter. This was what he was sent here to do, and even though the man before him was in a weak state, there was no telling what he would do. Either way, he still deserved to die for all the crimes he had committed. Without any more hesitation, he stabbed Zangetsu straight through Orochimaru's heart.

Silence ensued for a moment as Ichigo waited, staring at the blood that dripped from Orochimaru's lips. When he thought that it was over, Orochimaru pulsed and Ichigo felt an uneasy feeling sweep over his body.

"What's happening?" Ichigo slightly panicked as he pulled Zangetsu out of Orochimaru's chest. He instantly became dizzy, and he tried to stand while holding onto his zampakautou.

The curse mark started to burn intensely as Ichigo shook with discomfort. Then, all of a sudden, everything went black for a moment.

He found himself standing in his inner world with its skyscrapers turned on their sides. His eyes moved left and right as he watched for any kind of movement.

All of a sudden, a giant snake exploded out of the ground, catching him off guard. Ichigo tried to jump out of the snake's way and struggled to fight its open jaws as it tried to devour him.

Before he could blink, the snake was cut into pieces, which fell onto one of the skyscrapers, damaging the surface. Ogichi stood with his white Zangetsu held tightly in his hand—his white trench coat flowing behind him. "_No one takes over your body but me,_" He stated.

"I don't think it's over yet," Ichigo said. Ogichi sneered at the news. "We have to team up in order to defeat him."

Ogichi rolled his eyes. He really hated to ally with his counterpart, but he had no other choice if he wanted to take Ichigo's powers for himself in the future.

"Well?" Ichigo asked impatiently.

"_What do you th-_" Ogichi was cut off when the inner world started to shift from its normal appearance to a very dark atmosphere. The buildings rotted away, consuming the pieces of the snake.

"What the fuck is going on?" Ichigo muttered as he looked around his surroundings.

Suddenly, a blob rose out of the slimy substance covering every surface. The blob opened up, revealing Orochimaru with his evil grin.

Ichigo's eyes furrowed as he slashed Zangetsu forward, releasing dark reiatsu. "GETSUGA TENSHOU!"

Orochimaru sunk bank into the slime before the energy wave could reach him. "It's no use," his voice echoed. Ichigo and Ogichi turned around sharply, trying to find their adversary. "This is MY world now; you can't defeat me for I am IMMORTAL here!" His shrill laughter echoed throughout the dark place that was once Ichigo's inner world.

Suddenly, the slime started to cover Ichigo, gradually climbing up his legs and making its way to his hips. Ichigo tried to struggle his way out of…whatever it was, but it kept growing, holding him in place.

Orochimaru rose up once more, several feet in front of Ichigo. "Now, you're mine!" The slime bubbled as he made his way to Ichigo – the slime was now at the base of his neck.

Ogichi's hands shook as he watched this atrocity. He lifted his Zangetsu over his head. "_GET AWAY, YOU FUCKING BASTARD!_" He slashed his white katana forward. "_GETSUGA TENSHOU!_"

However, more slime rose up to block the white energy wave before it could connect. Ogichi growled in frustration. He charged towards Orochimaru, but another wave of slime rose up and knocked him to the ground, disarming him in the process and knocking him unconscious.

A wide grin spread across Ichigo's face as black markings spread across his body.

"Whatever you're doing won't be enough to stop me!" Orochimaru shouted with a loud cackle.

Suddenly, Ichigo started to change form. "Thank you for your power, Ogichi," he muttered as he averted his eyes towards his unconscious counterpart. His hair grew longer and horns appeared on his head. A hollow mask appeared on his face. Ichigo let out a tremendous amount of reiatsu, causing the slime to explode off of him. He stood with white claws on his hands and feet and a hole in his chest.

Orochimaru gasped in shock as he tried to envelop his next host with more of the slimy substance, but Ichigo dodged it using sonido. The sannin then sent snakes towards Ichigo, who caught them and ripped them apart with brute force.

Ichigo held out his hand and his black katana flung itself into his palm. Then he charged once again towards the evil Sannin.

Orochimaru tried everything he could think of to defend himself, but Ichigo easily broke down all defences. He raised Zangetsu and slashed through Orochimaru. The slime covering him evaporated from the sheer force. Orochimaru landed on the ground on his back, staring up in horror at the Vasto Lorde staring right back at him.

A half grimace-half smile spread across his face as he laughed. "You were counting on this, weren't you?" Ichigo's eyes glowed in lust as reiatsu formed between his horns. "You're good," Orochimaru said, "too good."

Before he could say anything more, Ichigo unleashed his cero, destroying Orochimaru. Soon afterwards, the dark, slimy world shifted back to the sideways skyscrapers, and Ichigo's hollow exterior shattered, revealing his true, shinigami form.

In exhaustion, Ichigo fell to his knees and smiled in triumph. At that moment, Ogichi woke up and walked towards Ichigo – an evil grin on his face.

Sensing his counterpart's presence and intentions, Ichigo frowned and managed to stand up. "You've got some nerve, Ogichi."

Ogichi chuckled. "_You're exhausted and this is my chance! Might as well take it now and be done with it._"

"Is that so?" Ichigo asked. He stretched his hand out in front of him. "Hadou 73 – Soren Sokatsui!" Two blue fireballs knocked Ogichi into a nearby building, taking him by surprise. A purple rod formed in Ichigo's hands. "Bakudou 62 – Hyapporankan!" He threw the rod at Ogichi, who was trying to collect himself, and it slit into smaller pieces, which held him in place.

Ogichi cursed as he tried to struggle. "This may or may not hold you for long," Ichigo said, "but it should teach you to try to take over. Heed this warning, Ogichi. I am and always will be in control. Don't you _ever_ forget that."

Ichigo opened his eyes and noticed he was still in Orochimaru's chamber. He looked at the corpse of Orochimaru, bent in a sitting position in his bed. Ichigo grasped Zangetsu's hilt and pulled the sword out, releasing what was left of Orochimaru's blood.

Satisfied with his victory, Ichigo reverted back to his shikai state. He reached behind his neck to touch the curse mark, but he noticed that it had disappeared.

Attaching Zangetsu to his back, Ichigo stepped out of the room and walked down the partially caved-in hallway – the damage caused from the fight he had with Sasuke.

It did not take much longer for him to make it to the exit, and he noticed someone was waiting for him. As he moved closer, he realized that it was Kuchiki Rukia. He smiled brightly as he ran towards her. She too was smiling.

Ichigo wrapped his arms around his girlfriend tightly and swung her around once before setting her on her feet.

"You're excited to see me," Rukia said.

Ichigo placed a hand on her cheek. "I missed you, so of course I would be happy to see you."

"Well, I'm here to pick you up," Rukia said.

"Did I pass?" Ichigo asked hopefully.

Rukia raised an eyebrow. "Is the curse mark gone?"

The lieutenant knew that he was being monitored during his mission, so there was no surprise that Rukia knew about the curse mark. "It's gone," he replied with a nod.

Rukia checked his neck just to be sure and nodded in approval. "Even though you acted unlike yourself and more like a serial killer, I would say that you passed."

Ichigo shrugged. "They were on Orochimaru's side anyway. They were no match for my abilities."

Rukia sighed. "I guess you've got a point." She grabbed Ichigo's hand. "Let's go back to the Soul Society. Everyone's waiting."

Ichigo pulled Rukia towards him and pressed his lips against hers, taking her by surprise. He wrapped his arms tightly around her waist as he deepened the kiss. Rukia wrapped her arms around her lover's neck, returning the kiss that they had longed to give one another. After all, this was the first mission that Ichigo had done without her, so she had a feeling that it must have been hard for him to be away from her. _He's such an idiot, _she thought to herself as she smiled into the kiss, _a loveable, handsome idiot. _My_ loveable idiot._

They parted and looked deep in each other's eyes, cherishing their reunion. It seemed like a moment of silence until Ichigo put his hand in Rukia's and spoke. "Let's go, my dear."

Rukia smirked as she tightened her grip. With her other hand, she drew Sode no Shiroyuki and opened the Senkaimon.

When they were stepping through the gate, Ichigo thought of how Konoha would be rejoicing after learning of Orochimaru's defeat. He was guilty for attacking several of the shinobi there, but he knew that some probably understood the fact that he was not himself, especially how they had wanted to help before he left the village. They will be all right though, as long as one of their biggest threats is gone for good.

* * *

And that is that! Sorry it took way too long to get the final chapter out there. I hope you enjoyed it anyway. It was so hard to write, especially the fight scenes, but I kind of like how it had turned out. Did you? Please review if you did. That would be mean a lot. Once again, thank you all for your support on this one. I will be starting Condemned Time next, so hopefully that should be done soon. I'm very busy with school and other parts of my personal life at the moment, but I'm going to try my very best to update.

Take care, everyone!


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